Exhibits
A portion of the Museum’s 135-foot mural, in progress.
Scene from the Museum’s reenactment film, portraying the Memphis Cotton Exchange in its heyday.
When you step inside the Cotton Museum, you’re having an experience once reserved for a privileged few. This is the “Members Only” trading floor of the Memphis Cotton Exchange, carefully restored to its 1939 glory.
Inside, you can stand in the very phone booths used by legendary cotton men — and hear stories about everything from the fields to Front Street. You can marvel at an authentic Western Union telegraph office, used to constantly update the merchant offices down the block. You can take in the massive trading board, with 1939 prices hastily scribbled in chalk. Look higher, and you can see a modern touch — the story of cotton in pictures, as told in a 135-foot custom mural created by renowned Memphis artist David Mah.
As you explore this room — reading, studying artifacts, and viewing video — you’ll be surprised how this downy white fiber has weaved its influence into your life and world. Learn:
- The story of cotton
- The society of cotton
- Cotton in the South
- Music and cultural impact
- Cotton today
- Technology of cotton
- The history of Front Street
- The history of the Memphis Cotton Exchange
- The Cotton Hall of Fame; Sponsored by Suntrust.